Parents divided on who's at fault in shocking fight between high school teacher and student caught on video

Parents are divided on who is at fault in a shocking fight between a Tennessee high school teacher and a student that was caught on video and has since gone viral.

The physical confrontation happened on Tuesday afternoon inside the cafeteria at Trezevant High School in Memphis.

Video shows the teacher and the student getting in each other's faces. The teacher, dressed in a purple shirt, is seen shoving the student, wearing a white shirt, on four different occasions. After the teacher pushed the student the fourth time, the student squares up with fists and escalates the situation. The student then unleashes a flurry of punches at the teacher.

The teacher initially attempts to wrap up the student with his arms, but then retaliates with punches.

The fight is broken up by a police officer.

The 16-year-old student involved in the fight said he was reacting to the teacher pushing him.

"He was constantly pushing me, and I was telling him all of that force wasn’t needed, and I was still walking, and he was constantly pushing me," the student told WHBQ. "He pushed me again, and that’s when I got angry and fought back."

Lakita Craft, the mother of the student who fought with the teacher, said the school staff should have done a better job of deescalating the situation.

Other students then joined the fight.

Shelby County Commissioner Charlie Caswell Jr. said as many as 50 people were involved in the brouhaha.

Another student who witnessed the fight said he believed that the teacher was in the wrong.

The anonymous student told WREG-TV, "He pushed him, and he wasn’t supposed to get that aggressive with the student."

He added, "Teachers can’t touch students."

The anonymous student said he participated in the fight and has since been suspended from Trezevant High School for his actions.

A parent agreed that the teacher was at fault in the physical altercation.

LaDarrel Young told the outlet, "Everyone has to be held accountable. If the teacher puts hands on him first then of course the student is going to react. Ain’t no student going to let anybody put their hand on them, whether it’s an adult or another child."

However, another parent said the teacher did nothing wrong and was understandably defending himself from an aggressor.

The unnamed parent said, "The teacher should not be penalized for that. You actually have to hold the people accountable who started the fight – that was the child."

Memphis-Shelby County Schools said in a statement that several students were detained in the melee. The school district noted that they have launched an investigation into the ugly incident and that appropriate disciplinary actions will be administered.

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